A Narrative of the Confinement and Exile of William Steel Dickson [The Author] (Electronic book text)

Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. Excerpt from book: Section 3signed for this delusive measure were, the profound ignorance of the Catholics, and consequent incapacity, not only of enjoying, but textit{bearing liberty. These reasons, or rather textit{shameless pretexts, though equally textit{unfounded, insulting, and textit{blasphemous, imposed on a few, and gave others an excuse for opposing the public will, and public wish. To my astonishment, this delusion operated on a small party, in the enlightened and liberal town of Belfast; and .displayed itself on the 14th. of July, after a public review. ' In a discussion, before the great volunteer body, there assembled, gradual emancipation was introduced, and pleaded for, on the ground of Catholic ignorance and incapacity; and the language, in which the impolicy, danger, and folly of total and immediate enfranchisement was expressed, excited disgust and indignation in the minds of the people. Several gentlemen ably rejected, and warmly reprobated, the assertions made, and sentiments expressed, by the promoter of opposition to the general sense of the assemblytextit{; and, latterly, something too warm seemed to pervade it, of which I feared the increase and the consequences. Under the influence of this fear, and in hope of checking the heat of debate, I reluctantly yielded to the impulse of addressing the meeting: and, as argument was unnecessary, where there was nothing like argument E to to answer, after what had fallen from other gentlemen, I only hung a few rags of ridicule on the step-ladder of " gradual emancipation," vhich were eagerly laid hold of, and, in the heat of imagination, formed into a mantle, under which Mrs. " Time to Time" looked so silly, that her God-fathers were ashamed of, and abandoned her. In consequence, Lady " Total and Immediate" was unanimously adopted, embraced, and cheered. Fr...